


'I Have To Be A Hero'

by Word_Devourer



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-08
Updated: 2018-11-08
Packaged: 2019-08-20 20:20:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,107
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16562483
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Word_Devourer/pseuds/Word_Devourer
Summary: Ladybug has been worried sick about where the Bee Miraculous might have gone, but even so, when a black and yellow superheroine shows up to a tricky fight, she can't help but be grateful.This one-shot takes place directly after that theoretical fight, when Ladybug tries to recover the lost Miraculous.





	'I Have To Be A Hero'

**Author's Note:**

> Of course, Queen B's appearance was what inspired Hawkmoth to continue his villainy, but let's be real, he'd probably have gone back to it sooner or later.

Ladybug landed in front of, what had she called herself?  Queen B?   Queen B.

“You know why I’m here, don’t you?”

The blonde girl, oddly familiar, but not quite recognizable, made a face.  Pursed lips, but eyes without malice.

“I know.”

She put out a hand.

“I can’t.”

“What?”

Queen B took a breath, and shook her head.  “I can’t give you this.”

Ladybug took a step back, a wary hand reaching down for her weapon.  “What do you mean.”

“I _mean,_ ” she said, voice suddenly angry.  With a visible effort, she held it back.  “I mean, I can’t give this to you, because _I_ need it.”

“Why.”

“I need it, because…”  She seemed to choke on what she was saying.  She looked away, clearly annoyed by something, and then looked back, finally finishing, voice violent, _“because I’m not a hero.”_

Ladybug searched for a response, but she wasn’t done.

“I’m not a hero, okay?  I’ve never _been_ a hero.  But _today,_ when I showed up, people were _happy_ to see me.”

She seemed to have broken whatever was making it hard to speak.  “I have, _maybe,_ two friends, and _everybody else_ … Doesn’t like me, for no…  Because I don’t, exactly, make it easy.”

“So… I can’t give this Miraculous back to you.  I can’t.”

“Queen B,” said Ladybug, gently, “that’s not how this works. Every Miraculous is a risk.  Hawkmoth is already dangerous, and if he were to get even one more Miraculous, we could be in serious trouble.”

Queen B turned away.  “Yeah.  I know,” she said, bitterly.  She muttered something under her breath.

“What did you say?” said Ladybug, stepping close, reaching out a hand towards her shoulder.

Suddenly, her whole stomach was numb, with a single burning point in the middle of it.

“I said,” said Queen B, quietly, “ _venom.”_

Ladybug fell to her knees, trembling, trying to make _something_ move.

“I’m… Sorry,” she said, “I just, _can’t_ let you have this.  I’m going to be the greatest hero this city has ever seen.  You’ll realize, sooner or later, that this isn’t a bad thing, alright?  You won’t regret this.”

And with that, she was gone, off into the skyline, to who knew where.

Ladybug managed to clench a hand, and slowly, _slowly,_ shift her foot under her.  It wouldn’t do anything, of course; Queen B was long gone, and even if she made it to her feet, she couldn’t swing across the city like this.

A minute passed, and then two.

And then, as quickly as it had hit her, she could move again.  Her body ached from struggling, but otherwise, she was back to normal.

She stared off towards where she’d gone, and sighed.

There wasn’t anything she could do.  She didn’t know who she _really_ was, or where she lived, or…  Anything.  Paris had acquired a superhero, whether they liked it or not.

\--

She paced across her room, trying to steady herself.  It felt like she was sick; her face was burning, and if anybody walked into her room right now…  Pollen was out in the open, and that alone-

She closed the door, with a satisfying slam, and sat down.

At this rate, she was going to pass out, and… What was it.  Deep breaths?

She sucked in air, face still unrepentantly angry, and let the breath out.

Again.

It was _fine._   _Yes,_ she had just used _venom_ on Ladybug.  _Yes,_ Ladybug.  And _yes,_ Ladybug had told her to give back the Miraculous, and she’s refused.  _Yes,_ she’d gone against her longtime hero for this.  And…

And…

The bit that was _actually_ giving her trouble; everything she’d said to Ladybug.  Everything she’d said about not being a hero, or…  All of it.

She could almost pretend she’d been saying it for Ladybug; some sob story to get her off her back.  But it wasn’t.  She’d _meant every word,_ and _that…_

That was the problem.

She was Chloe Bourgeois.  Everyone loved her, and rightfully so. _That_ was what she premised her life on.  She was the _queen,_ even out of the suit.

But, she _still_ couldn’t get it out of her head.

“Is everything alright, my queen?”

“Of _course_ everything’s alright,” she snapped, but it managed to sound hollow, even in her own ears.

Did Pollen even know what had happened?  Did she remember going against Ladybug?

Pollen didn’t respond, instead opting to slip over to a quiet corner of the room to shift some small items around.

Chloe stared after her, as she painstakingly hung a silk handkerchief between Chloe’s bedside clock and lamp.  After a moment’s contemplating, she began to search about for more material.

It was strangely relaxing to watch, but she _still_ couldn’t get what had happened earlier out of her head.

Minutes passed, and eventually, she couldn’t take it anymore.

“I’m a hero,” she said, suddenly.  Pollen turned to look at her.  “Right?”

Pollen looked at her for a long second, and sighed, with a strangely enigmatic smile.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean..!  I mean…  I mean that, I don’t know, if I am.”

“Do you know what a hero is?”

“Of course I do!”

“Do you know who _you_ are?”

“Of course!”

“Then you already know.”

“But I don’t!”

“Then you don’t know one of them.”

Chloe opened her mouth to say something, and stopped.

“The question is which one,” said Pollen, with that same Sphinx smile.

Chloe’s hands clenched, as she tried to strangle the impulse of physical violence.  This… Whatever it was called, didn’t seem like something to mess with.  Besides, the logic made sense.

“You helped the heroes today.  And then you disobeyed them.”  Chloe looked away, and sighed. “Just because you helped them today doesn’t make you a hero.”  She nodded, not happy, but unwilling to deny it.

“On the other hand,” said Pollen, “they aren’t always right.  Maybe Ladybug was wrong to try and take me back.”

Chloe looked up, face, for once, expressionless, to the sight of Pollen turning away, back to work on her makeshift shelter.

“Maybe you’ll… prove her wrong.”

\--

Pollen couldn’t see her face.  She didn’t _need_ to.

Of course, it was dangerous to be out in the open like this, but with the perfect owner, it _had_ to be worth it.  Driven, take-charge, high-class, and powerful even without the suit.  She even had the same acidic personality that she had come to love from her previous wielders.  And, best of all, she had something to prove, a… _throne_ to take.  _‘The greatest hero this city had ever seen’_ She’d heard similar things from her previous wielders, and sometimes…

Sometimes they even managed it.

**Author's Note:**

> Pollen came out interesting in this, and, I'll be honest, I'm kind of into it.


End file.
